Local Storage, Folders & Settings

Use Settings to manage chosen folders, meetings, memory sources, permissions, and routines. This page also explains where Lumen keeps its data, how audio retention works, and how to back up or remove saved data.

To open Settings, press ⌘, or choose Settings at the bottom of Lumen's sidebar. Settings open in the main window: the sidebar shows the seven panes, with Back to Lumen at the top. To return to where you were, choose Back to Lumen, press Esc (when you aren't typing in a field), or press ⌘[.

Settings reference#

Pane	Settings
General	Appearance (System, Light, or Dark), Larger text, Keyboard shortcuts, and Storage with Show in Finder for the app's data folder
Search	Chosen folders: add folders with Choose folders…, reselect an unavailable folder with Choose again…, or Remove a folder's access and its search index. Refresh index rescans chosen folders. With the search package: Update the index when files change, Pause indexing on battery, Code search folders, and Exclude folders or file types; see Search files
Meetings	Meeting detection (Off, Suggest recording, or Record automatically, with a separate switch for browser calls), Floating panel while recording (on by default), Keep original audio (off by default; applies to new meetings, and audio is deleted only after transcription, notes, and saves succeed), and Local models with Details for package identity, revision, license, and provenance
Memory	Each memory source with its own switch and retention, Pause memory, Exclusions, Categories for every app Lumen has seen, and delete controls; see Memory and Ask Lumen
Permissions	Each macOS permission Lumen can use, what it's for, and its live status. Allow shows the macOS prompt, and Open System Settings opens the right Privacy pane for a refused one. Allowing one doesn't turn on memory or capture
Routines	Setup for each routine, plans Ready to review, Recent changes with Undo, and Drafts; see Routines
About	Privacy summary, version, and Acknowledgements

Changing the audio preference doesn't change existing meetings. Setup has no model or provider chooser, no account, and no cloud fallback.

What is stored#

The signed app keeps its data in its sandbox container, under Library/Application Support/Lumen. A typical path is:

~/Library/Containers/app.uselumen.local/Data/Library/Application Support/Lumen/
├── preferences.json
├── Search.sqlite
├── MeetingSearch.sqlite
└── Meetings/
    └── <session UUID>/
        ├── session.json
        ├── audio-chunks.json
        └── <captured audio chunks>.caf

To find the exact folder on your Mac, choose Show in Finder. SQLite may also create companion journal files next to each database.

Note: An unsigned swift run Lumen uses the ordinary Application Support folder instead, so it can appear to have different data.

Data	Contents
Preferences	Setup state, appearance, retention preference, folder and tool access
Search database	File and passage metadata, extracted text, keyword index, and optional versioned vectors
Meeting metadata	Session state, rough notes, action items, transcript and notes when prepared, source references, tool versions
Audio chunks and journal	Separate captured tracks and finalized-chunk metadata for processing and recovery
Markdown exports	Files saved to destinations you choose; separate from the app's data folder

Bundled models live inside the app. Imported local tool packages stay in the folder you selected. Lumen doesn't include a model weight downloader.

Important: The search database contains copies of text extracted from your files, and Lumen adds no app-specific encryption layer. Protect backups of this folder as you would the original documents.

How audio retention works#

Keep original audio applies to new meetings.

Off (default): After all required processing and durable saves succeed, Lumen can remove the meeting's audio. The transcript, notes, actions, and source metadata stay.
On: Lumen keeps the original audio for the meeting after processing too.

Whatever the setting, Lumen keeps the audio for retry when tools are missing, processing fails or is cancelled, or the session was interrupted. If storage grows, check for unfinished meetings and use Show saved audio to inspect them.

Back up your work#

Stop any recording, then let processing finish or cancel it.
Quit Lumen.
Copy the complete data folder. Copy all database files together so the SQLite backup isn't partial.
Optional: Keep Markdown exports separately if you want readable copies outside Lumen.

Lumen has no in-app backup, restore, or migration assistant. A copy of the data folder is a manual precaution, not a validated way to restore across versions. After a restore on another Mac or after a signing change, you might need to choose folders and tools again.

Remove access or saved data#

Stop searching a folder#

Choose Remove beside the folder. Lumen stops searching it and clears its derived search entries. Your original files stay in place, and meetings and previously saved exports aren't affected.

Remove saved app data#

Lumen has no option to delete a single meeting or all app data. To remove app data manually:

Choose Show in Finder to find the exact folder.
Copy anything you want to keep.
Stop any recording, then quit Lumen.
Delete the data you no longer need.

Important: Deleting app data loses saved work. Don't remove an interrupted meeting's audio if you still want to recover it with a retry.

Exports and separately supplied tool packages live outside this folder, so you remove them separately.

Settings and storage